Evelyn Mora, founder and CEO of VLGE, joins Phillip and Brian to challenge how we think about AI training data, brand identity, and the coming era of individual-first commerce. We move from the mechanics of world modeling to the cultural philosophy of what it means for brands to let go, adapt, and become an ingredient rather than the star of the show.

PLUS: Strata Volume 001 is available for purchase now!

• Good AI agents are trained on embodied, human data, not synthetic simulations.
• Brands' training data pipelines will become their most competitive IP.
• The "personal economy" is shifting commerce from generational boxes to radical individuality.
• Brands must become an adaptable story that’s recognizable but infinitely mixable.
• The future of AI is expensive. Data sovereignty and consent economics are coming.

[00:06:46] "A good agent would know my budget, my personality, my preferences." — Evelyn Mora

[00:21:08] "When you have humans going and playing and reacting with their free will and their freedom and their personality and identity... that to me is the ultimate high signal data." — Evelyn Mora

[00:40:06] "Brands should kind of evolve into these different mediums... into a flavor that can really be mixed into everyone's lives." — Evelyn Mora

[00:53:54] "In this agent Hunger Games, it really does matter how you train and what kind of training data you capture." — Evelyn Mora

• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Andrew Youderian joins Phillip and Brian to break down the 2026 eCom Trends Report: a decade in the making, 300 brands surveyed, and a lot of conventional wisdom overturned. The data reveals a diverging landscape where gross margins are climbing but net margins are shrinking, Amazon's dominance is quietly unwinding, and AI's productivity promise hasn't quite arrived – yet.

• Paid advertising isn't the problem, but your P&L structure might be
• Amazon's share of community revenue has fallen to 2017 levels, despite record seller counts
• AI adoption isn't moving the financial needle. 2026 may be the inflection point
• Lean operations (sub-20% overhead) consistently separate the optimistic from the pessimistic
• Raising prices remains the fastest, highest-impact lever operators chronically underuse
• Andrew's thesis: we're entering the era of the small, durable brand — slower, sturdier, built to last

• [00:12:14] "Quality product is no longer the moat. Attention is the moat. But the problem is attention is expensive and easily diverted." — Brian
• [00:14:22] "The future is going to be the era of the small, durable brand — fewer brands that scale quickly, more brands that build slowly the old-fashioned way." — Andrew Youderian
• [00:27:24] "I think 2026, 2027, we're going to see those AI-adopting brands start to pull away — but I don't think it has delivered yet on what it's promised." — Andrew Youderian
• [00:35:34] "There's nothing I have done across multiple businesses that has ever had as much impact, as quickly, and that I have regretted waiting as long to do, as raise prices." — Andrew Youderian

• eCommerceFuel 2026 eCom Trends Report (Blueprint)
• eCommerceFuel

• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!

This episode is sponsored by Criteo. Get $1,500 in free ad credit with Criteo Go now!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How does a 76-year-old legacy retailer reinvent itself as a tech-powered ecosystem? Lisa Horton, Chief Communications & Creative Officer at David’s Bridal, dishes on the company’s grand modernization and how they’ve expanded to accommodate the next generation’s Gen-Z-sized aspirations.

• David's Bridal's "Aisle to Algorithm" pivot puts AI at the center of everything — from merchandising to internal communications.
• The Style Squad ambassador program bridges employee creators ("Dream Makers") and external influencers, offering the most aggressive affiliate commission in retail at 20%.
• David's captures 90% of brides who enter their ecosystem — a first-party data advantage few retailers can match.
• The definition of "influencer" is broadening: word of mouth is influence, and everyone is influential.
• David's is building beyond bridal — eyeing the post-wedding household, where the majority of purchase decisions are made.
• [00:00:54] "We're basically a startup inside of a 76-year-old retailer." - Lisa Horton
• [00:12:09] "We have shifted in the last 12 months from being a legacy retailer to a 360 degree wedding planning ecosystem." - Lisa Horton
• [00:13:12] "Word of mouth is influence. And everyone is influential." - Lisa Horton
• [00:22:06] "Everything that we do moving forward is always going to come from a place of how do we mitigate her stress? How do we make her feel excited and seen and celebratory in every moment." - Lisa Horton

• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.